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Greatest Fools? The Countries That Trust Their Government Most (And Least)

Trust in government serves as a vital driving force for a country's economic development, increases the effectiveness of governmental decisions, as well as leading to greater compliance with regulations and the tax system.As Statista's Niall McCarthy notes, the level of confidence in a country's government is generally determined by whether people think their government is reliable, if it can protect its citizens from risk and whether or not it is capable of effectively delivering public services.

Unsurprisingly, Greece has the lowest level of confidence in its government, unsurprising given the economic pain it has suffered since the onset of the financial crisis. In recent years, Greece has had to deal with multiple elections, bank shutdowns, defaulting, the introduction of capital controls and being on the frontline of the European migration crisis. That has all led to 13 percent of the Greek public having confidence in their government. South Korea also has a low level of confidence at 24 percent, most likely due to President Park Geun-hye's impeachment scandal.

In the United States, the White House is struggling to shake off allegations of Russian collusion and only 30 percent of the public have confidence in the government. The United Kingdom is also enduring turbulent times amid its Brexit negotiations and 41 percent of the public have faith in their government.

At the other end of the spectrum, 58 percent of people in Russia and Turkey trust their governments whileIndia (the nation that just surprised the entire nation by making its banknotes illegal) has the highest confidence levels at 73 percent. Greatest Fools?